Tube-cleaning device



Nov. 27, 1928.

D. S. JACOBUS TUBE CLEANING DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 20. 1922p! INVENTOR 4M ATTORNEY Nov. 27, 1928.

D. S, JACOBUS TUBE CLEANING DEVICE Filed June 20. 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INV NTOR 4% ATTORNEYS Patented Nov. 2 7, 1928;

, UNITED STATES PATENT-2' orrlcs I,

nAvlns. JACOBUS, or JERSEY CITY, NEWJERSEY, ASSIGNOR mo ,TI-YIE BABCOCK &; ..WI LG0X COMPANY, or BAYONNE, NEW JERSEY, A ooBPoRA'rIou 0F NEWJERSEX. 1

TUBE-CLEANING DEVICE;

Application filed June 20, 1922. Serial No; 569,703.

present invention will-be best under;

stood from the following description and the annexed drawings, in which Figure 1 is a section on line 11 of Fig. 2; Fig. 2 isa side elevation of aportion of a heat-transfer device, such as a: boiler, still or the like; Fig.

3 is an enlargedportion of Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is a more or less diagrammatic representation of a plan-view of the tubes in Fig. 1; Fig. 5 is an enlarged plan view, partly broken away, of the arrangement shown in Fig. 1; Fig. .6 is an enlarged view similar to Fig. 1, and Figs. 7 and 8 are side elevations of the bent tubes shown in the assembled views.

Like reference characters indicate like parts in" the several views.

As an illustrationof my inventionyl have shown it in connection with aportion'of an oil still in which there is an upper drumlO and a lower drum 11 connected'by'tuhes; arranged in rows extending parallel to the axis of the boiler, these rows being numbered 12,

" 13, 14 and '15, respectively, inthe drawings.

In the form shown, the tubes are parallel .to each other throughout their length with their ends -.entered into upper and lower drums non-radially in other words, the ends ofthe tubes are not bentat the point of entranceinto .the drums. Inthe form shown, therows of tubes are not staggered, but have the arrangement'shown best in Figs. 4 and 5.

Inall classes ofstructures usedfor heating fluids, it isnecessaryto clean the interior of the tubes from timeto time, and this is done usually by rotary tubecleanersof well known types allof which have some form of cleaner head which'must be passed through the tube and which, therefore, must have some kind of a connection reaching to the outside, both to control its movement through the tube and usuall also to suoply )ower' to the,

y l l cleaner. In some liquid-heating devices, it is necessary to clean the tubes quite frequently, and this is particularly true of oil stills in which the carbon from the oil deposits on the interior ofthe tubes. In such structures, it is desirable to reduce the number of handholes asmuch as possible, alwaysfor the sake of economy and usually alsoinorder to minimize the number of oints which must be kepttight.

By mypresent invention I have provided a structure-by which the number of openings v more readily manipulated.

' In use,the handhole fitting for the handhole as well as the diameters ofsuch openings may be made small and yet the tubes 4 may be cleaned readily,

I In the form illustrated, the tubes arearf holes 10 with their axes in the vertical axial plane-of drum 10 are] provided in theside of theolrum opposite the tube ends and are spaced alongthe drum so that a handhole is midway between the. vertical planes passing through a pair of acent cross rows of tubes. By this arrangement, each handhole 10 when viewed from above, is at thegeometrical center of a group of tubes made up of two tubes 12, two tubes 13, two tubes 14 and two tubes 15., It will also be obvious that,in the arrangement illustrated, the handholelm is also opposite the. geometrical centerof a group of fourqtubes, made up of two of the tubes 13 and two otthe tubes 14, all of which are equidistant from such center., Likewise, it is obvious that'the handhole'lO isopposite the geometrical center of a group made up of two of the tubes 12 andtwo of the tubes 15,

shown on a large scale in Figs. 7 and 8. The top of each of the'tubes may be'provided with a handle, as at 18, by which the tube may be opposite a group of tubes to be cleaned, is

opened, as shown in Fig. Land the tube 16 inserted through the handhole. The bend in the tube 16-is such that its lower end can be brought into contact: with either oneofthe two tubes 12.0f the group or either one of the two tubes .15 of the group. This is because the handhol'e isloc'atecl opposite the geomet- 'rical center of these four holes- With the tube 16 in the positionshown inig; 1, the

tube Icleaner C will be entered. into and guided by the bent tube 1 6 and will enter the upper end of thetube 12, thehose H being all ofwhich are equidistant from such center.

Then, for the form of boileror still-illustrated, I provide twov bent tubes 16 and 17 used to control the vertical motion of the cleaner C and also the power supply for the motor M of the cleaner 0. The cleaner is preferably started up and made to rotate while in the bent tube 16 so that it will el f'ectively clean the uppermost end of the tube 12. Thecleancr, by its rotation, removes the coating on the inner side'ot the tube in the usual manner, and the cleaner is lowered through the extent or the tube. It is then withdrawn, preferablywhile in rotative motion, in order tofurther clean the tube 12,

be applied to many forms of boilers, stills the rotative motion being preferably con tiued until the cleaner is within the tube 16;

The bent tube 16 is then rotated until its lower end is above theother of the tubes 12, which is cleaned in the same manner. 'Then', the bent tube 16 will be rotateduntil its lower end comes successively into contact with the two tubes 15. lhe tube 16, in the form illustrat'ed, is then withdrawn and the second bent tube 17 inserted, which is curved to bring its lower end into contact with two of the tubes 13 of the group and two of the tubes 14: of the and the like, in which tubes are entered into drums, and that 1t may be used 111 connection with such arrangements when the ends of the tubes are bent so as to -enter the drum radially. a

It will also be obvious that the arrangement would be applicable for cleaning a group of tubes-entering a flattube sheet.

It will also be understood that while I have shown my lnvention 1n connectlon with a fluld-heatlng arrangement having vertlcal tubes,-it may be used with any other form,

tubes in said group.

such as one havinghorizontal tubes.

I'clain1: 1. A device for use with cleaning means for a plurality of tubes having their ends entered in the periphery of a drum at one side thereof and arranged in a group with a plurality of tube ends'in the group substantially equidistant from the geometrical center of the group, said drum having a handhole in the side of the drum opposite'the' tube ends and substantially opposite the' geometrical center of said group, said device comprising means to guide a cleaner from said'handhole into the end of any one of the 2. A device for use with cleaning means for tubes having their ends entered in the periphery of a drum at one side thereof and arranged in groups with a plurality of the tube ends in each group substantially equidistant from the geometrical center of the group, said drum having a handhole in the side of the drum opposite the tube ends and substantially opposite the geometrical center of each of said groups, said device compris ing means to guide a cleaner from one of said handholes into the end of any oneof the tubes in the group having its geometrical center opposite said handhole.

3. A device 'fo'ruse with cleaning means i for tubes having'their ends entered in the periphery of a drum at one-side thereof withsaid ends arranged in rows both parallel to and at right angles to the axis of "said drum, said drum havinga row of handholes in the side of the drum opposite the tube ends with their centers substantially opposite the center of the space between a pair of rows 01:

tube ends extending parallel to the drumaxis and with the center of each handhole substantially opposite the center of-the space between a pair of rows of tube ends extending at right angles to the drum axis, there being one-half as many handholesas there are tube end rows 7 at right anglesto the drumaxis,said device comprising means to guide a cleaner from one of said handholes into any one of a plurality of tube ends.

4;. A device for use with cleaning means for a tube having its end entered in theipe riphery of a drum, saiddrum having a hand hole on the side opposite the tube end, with the axis of the handhole out of alinement with the axis of the tube end, said device comprising means to guide a cleaner from said handhole into the end of said tube. a

5; A device for use withcleaning means for a tube having its end entered inthe periphery of a drum, said drum having a handhole on the side opposite the tube end,with

the axis of the handhole outoflalinement with the axis of the tube end, said device comprising a removable tube arranged to eX- tend through the handhole to the tube and;

I adapted to guide a cleaner from said hand-- hole into the end of said tube.

6. A device for use with cleanlng means for a plurality of tubes having then'wends entered in the periphery of a drum at one side thereof and arranged in agroup with a plurality of tube ends in the group sub stantially equidistant from the geometrical centerof the group, said drum having a handhole substantially opposite the geometrical" center of said group, said device comprising means to guide a rotary cleaner from said handhole into the endtof any one of the tubes in said group with the cleaner rotating as it enters said end.

for a tube having its end entered in the pe riphery of a drum, said drum having a hand A device for use with cleaning-means hole 611 the side'opposite the tube end, with the axis of the handhole out of alinement With the axis of the tubeend, said device comprising means to guide a rotary cleaner from said handhole into the end of said tube With the cleaner rotating as it enters said end.

8. A device for use With cleaning means for a tube having its end entered in the periphery of a drum, said drum having a handcomprising a removable tube arranged to extend through the handhole into contactwith the end of the tube and adapted to guide a cleaner from said handhole into the end of said tube. v 7 DAVID S. JACOBUS. 

